Favorite schooling fish?

[Chris]

I'm starting to think about what type of fish I want to have once my tank is done, and a nice small school would be a nice effect.

The blue/green chromis get pretty big and imo they're kinda ugly. :P What are some of your favorites?

From a reefs.org thread I found these little guys... they get up to a max of 2" in length so that's a plus, I could get a school of 6-8 of them without problems but they appear to be hard to find.

http://www.reefimages.com/AnthiasImages/A9633.jpg
Threadfin Cardinalfish
Apogon leptacanthus

8)

[captexas]

I have wondered about schooling fish as well. Never been too crazy about Chromis, but I saw Vihns tank where he has a few and they looked nice. They didn't seem to really school around, but cool to watch several of the same kind of fish interact.

[DeletedAccount]

I have a group of 6 blue green chromis that were cute and great when they were little, now that they are close to full grown they are dull and fairly independent. 3 are in 1 group, 1 loner (one eyed little guy), and a pair. I feel they are my least favorite live thing (next to the mantis) I have!

[captexas]

I guess chromis are like babies and puppies, they are cut when they are little, but along the way to maturity something happens to them! :-D

If you had plenty of room a small school of heniochus would be cool.

[Chris]

I think the problem with the chromis is once they get to a certain size, other fish won't bother them as much simply due to their size. Once they're accustomed to an environment where they don't live in fear of predators, moving around in a school is no longer beneficial to them and they'll do their own thing.

You could always get another fish that will pick on them a bit and they'll probably go back to schooling, but the smaller schooling fish are more likely to stay together.

Here's another one I might consider....

http://wetwebfotos.com/media/medium/4/2187_Serranus_tortugarumAQ2.tif.jpg
Chalk Basslets
Serranus tortugarum

Pro: Serranus tortugarum is one of the smallest members of the sea bass family (Serranidae sp.). They're from the Caribbean, and attain a maximum length of 3", although most specimens aren't much larger then 2" in captivity.

Con: They spend the majority of their existence close to the substrate, and seldom venture far from the sandbed/rocks.

[DeletedAccount]

In my last tank I had a school of Orangestriped Cardinalfish (Apogon cyanosoma). I had 7 in my 120 and they kept our love for 1 1/2 years. They were cute and had good personalities. When I moved here I could not find any and did not know a place to order them from. They are great, though. 3.1 inches max (mine were about 2 1/2 - 3).

[Chris]

Hah... almost scared me when I found this picture (http://www.cosmos.ne.jp/~breach/hot-spawn/spawn07-2.jpeg) of the Apogon cyanosoma. :oops:

Here's another (http://www.divegallery.com/cardinalfish.jpg), and one more (http://www.reefimages.com/AnthiasImages/A2211.jpg).

Not bad looking. Are they pretty social Misti? Not too shy?

[captexas]

Hey Chris -
On the orangestriped cardinalScott Michael's pocket guide states:
"One of the most ubiquitous cardinalfishes in the marine aquarium trade, in part because it is very colorful and hardy. It is a bolder species than some others in this family, spending much of its time in the open. By its nature, it usually does not move far from cover. Best kept in small groups of five to seven individuals, all of which should be introduced to the tank simultaneously."

HTH, Chris

[DeletedAccount]

I think that out of the 4 cardinal types I have had they are by far the most outgoing. They are not anywhere near as shy as, say, the Banggai. They were one of the only fish I had in my last system that I wanted to keep, but without a tank for 5 months they would not have faired well.

[DeletedAccount]

I love that first shot you listed! That was great!

[Chris]

Thanks for the info you two... I think the orangestripped cardinal has gone to the top of my list now for a schooling fish. 8)

I'll have to start looking for a place that sells them now.

[captexas]

Chris - I quickly scanned all of the online places I normally browse and the only place I found with them was Liveaquaria.com aka Dr. Foster & Smith. It has some info on them as well. I'm sure you could probably get Tim to find some for you too.

As you can probably tell, I'm bored! LOL :-D

[Chris]

Hehe... thanks for saving me the work. ;)

[TexasState]

Blue Regal Hippo Tang are not reef safe, but they do school together.

>>but I saw Vihns tank where he has a few and they looked nice. They didn't seem to really school around, but cool to watch several of the same kind of fish interact.

Maybe I don't have enough chromis in my tank to school. My friend have about 20 chromis in his 90 gallon corner, and it look pretty cool swimming together.